READING NONFICTION LITERATURE ON THE IPAD: AN EXPLORATORY CASE STUDY Dr. Victoria Cardullo, Ed.D. Auburn University

WHAT WAS THE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY  Investigate the experiences of eighth-grade readers as they read nonfiction text on an iPad for academic purposes.  Investigate reading strategies students used to support their reading as well as what role the iPad features played in the reading process.  Explore whether those same strategies apply when reading nonfiction text on an e-reader.  Explore the role of e-readers in content area instruction and learning.

PROBLEM STATEMENT  New Literacies of the 21 st century  Technologies are evolving faster than research can support them.  E-readers are a new “phenomenon” in classrooms  Schools are widely adopting e-readers that have not been fully integrated into the curriculum and or classroom.  How do they “fit” in instruction?  One to One Initiatives are outdated  One to World device ( a more ubiquitous alignment)

WHAT ARE THE QUESTIONS WE ARE SEEKING….  How do eighth-grade students read nonfiction text using the iPad?  What reading comprehension strategies do eighth-grade students use to read nonfiction text using the iPad?  What role do the iPad features play in the reading process?

METHODOLOGY  Exploratory Collective case study (within each case and across the cases)  Qualitative data collection  Student think alouds, student pre-and post-interviews, student surveys, and classroom observations (3 times a week for 12 weeks)  Teacher interview  Participants  8 th grade students (N=8)  Charter STEM School (K-8)  Sample selection  Purposeful sample

CHALLENGES OF TEXT SELECTION Original selection of text:  Hole in my Life ( Gantos, 2002) Lexile level 840 Alternative choice of text:  The Cage ( Mensky-Sender, 1986) Lexile level 500  Number the Stars (Lowery, 1998) Lexile level 670  I have Lived a Thousand Years: Growing up in the Holocaust (Bitton-Jackson, 1997) Lexile level 720  The Diary of a Young Girl: Anne Frank (Frank, 1991); Lexile level 1080 Final selection of text: Informational Text  The Shoah: 101 Keys to Understanding the Holocaust (Hurd, 2012); Lexile level 1180 Narrative Nonfiction  Anne Frank and the Children of the Holocaust (Lee, 2006); Lexile level 920  Note. 8th grade equivalent Lexile score is 805L-1100L.

THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK  New Literacies theory  Dual level theory (Leu et al., 2013)  Multimodal literacies (Leu, 2001)  Transactional theory  Transactions between the reader and the text and the ability (Leu et al., 2004).  Linguistic Experiential Reservoir (LER)  Constructivist theory  Socially constructed (Vygotsky, 1962, 1978)  Social interactions, understanding, and knowledge of the text  Metacognition theory  Text presented digitally present new challenges to comprehension (Coiro, 2003)  Active monitoring and consequent regulation (Flavell, 1976)

ANALYSIS OF DATA

LORI: CASE #1  Strategic reader—strong strategy usage; used several strategies sequentially  High reading comprehension, high MARSI score, and medium prior iPad use  Rapid succession of strategies in a short period of time to monitor and repair meaning  Layers of strategies for a simple task Supportive Strategies Frequency Reading Strategies Determine importance 24 Monitoring of meaning 13 Rereads 15 i-Pad Features Used Highlighting 32 Definition 20

LORI’S CONCEPT MAP STRATEGIC READING

ERIN: CASE #2 Receptive Vocabulary Strategies Adjusted iPad features High reading comprehension, high MARSI score, and medium prior iPad use Impact of vocabulary on Reading Comprehension Features of text and device – Supportive Supportive Strategies Frequency Reading Strategies Monitor meaning 6 Predictions 5 Context Clues 1 Rereads 7 Connections8 iPad Features Highlighting 17 Hyperlinks 17 Nonfiction Features Definition 17 Pronunciation Guide 10

ERIN’S CONCEPT MAP STRATEGIC READING

Strategic reader who needed motivation Believed the features of the device made reading on the iPad more “fluid” High reading comprehension, medium MARSI score, and low prior iPad use Read nonfiction text on the iPad differently, using both nonfiction and iPad features to support his learning Supportive Strategies Frequency Reading Strategies Context Clues 19 Rereads 16 Evaluation 23 Connections 11 iPad Features Sticky notes 10 Pronunciation Guide 16 Video 11 Search ( web/text) 14 Jerry: Case #3

JERRY’S CONCEPT MAP STRATEGIC READING

Inquisitive, explorative, assistive High reading comprehension, high MARSI score, and low prior iPad use Believed the features of the device helped support his understanding Used multiple texts to support his understanding cross-referencing content using the search feature. Supportive Strategies Frequency Nonfiction Features Definition/glossary 19 iPad Features Highlighting 14 Search Feature 10 Hyperlink 9 Video 8 Trey: Case #4

Preferred writing on paper Requested peer assistance often Average reading comprehension, medium MARSI score, and low prior iPad use. Preferred to just read rather than interact with the device Needed encouragement and support from peers Apprehensive of device Supportive Strategies Frequency Reading Strategies Context clues 18 Ipad Features Dictionary 14 Pronunciation Guide 14 Nonfiction Features Hyperlinks 9 Search Feature 8 Video 8 Anna: Case #5

EMERGENT THEMES  Comprehension Reading Strategies  Key reading comprehension strategies such as determining importance, monitoring meaning, synthesis, inferring, evaluation, reflection, predicting and contextual clues. Nonfiction features  Nonfiction support features reinforced students’ understanding of the text: audio/video, pronunciation guide, and definition. iPad features  Features specific to the iPad, were inherently supportive for student learning, understanding: highlighting, hyperlinking, sticky note, and search.

EMERGING THEMES Comprehension Strategies Connections-34 Context clues-49 Determining importance-38 Evaluation-55 Rereading-48 iPad Features Highlighting -42 Hyperlinks -101 Search-9 Sticky notes-55 Nonfiction Features Audio/video-66 Definition/Glossary-51 Examples-42 Pronunciation -48

DISCUSSION  Students relied on preexisting reading strategies to construct meaning from digital text when using the iPad and they also used “new” reading strategies.  Student explored iPad features to support their understanding of the nonfiction text when using the iPad.  Text features or absence of features impacted reading comprehension.  Range of reading strategies and iPad features used by students varied according to student reading proficiency, level of reading comprehension, and ease of iPad use.  Hypermedia and Hypertext offer embedded scaffolding & support.

IMPLICATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS  Students  Access beyond the classroom  Teachers  The support and dispositions of a metacognitive teacher  Researchers  Strong pedagogical framework for e-readers Publishers  Future development of e-books needs to provide creative content media

OTHER CHALLENGES  Instructional challenges  Instructional technology challenges (IT)  Accessibility challenges  Logistical challenges

THANK YOU  Questions  Discussion